STS Impact Windows, Doors & Roofing is a veteran-owned company based in South Florida that specializes in premium hurricane protection solutions, including impact windows, doors, custom storefronts, and roofing. Combining over 25 years of industry experience with military precision, STS provides expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, backed by a leading 3-year installation warranty. Their comprehensive services ensure security and peace of mind for both residential and commercial clients, with a strong focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency.
View on Google MapsSTS Impact Windows and Doors specializes in hurricane protection solutions, offering high-quality impact windows, storm-resistant doors, custom storefronts, and professional roofing services. With expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, the company ensures homes and businesses stay secure and energy-efficient.
STS Impact Windows and Doors is located at 1000 Holland Dr Suite 10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States. The company proudly serves residential and commercial clients across Florida and throughout the United States, delivering reliable storm protection solutions. View their location on Google Maps.
Yes, STS Impact Windows and Doors is a veteran-owned company recognized for its dedication, integrity, and service to the community. This background adds an extra level of trust and reliability for homeowners and businesses seeking storm protection solutions.
STS Impact Windows and Doors provides a wide range of services including the installation of hurricane impact windows, impact doors, custom commercial storefronts, and roofing services. Each project is backed by expert craftsmanship, a 3-year installation warranty, and over 25 years of industry experience.
The company proudly serves both residential homeowners and commercial property owners. From protecting family homes to fortifying businesses with hurricane-rated storefronts, STS Impact Windows and Doors delivers customized solutions that ensure safety, durability, and efficiency.
Clients benefit from the company’s focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency. Their impact-resistant windows and doors not only enhance security and hurricane protection but also improve energy efficiency, reduce noise, and increase property value. With a 3-year installation warranty, customers can trust in long-term performance and peace of mind.
STS Impact Windows and Doors has been recognized with multiple industry honors, including the South Florida Veteran Owned Business Excellence Award, Best Hurricane Protection Provider 2023 Florida, and the Angi’s Super Service Award for Window Installation. These awards highlight their commitment to excellence, customer satisfaction, and industry leadership.
You can reach STS Impact Windows and Doors by phone at 561-600-1018 or visit their website at stswindows.com. They are open Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm and are available on Facebook and Instagram for updates and project showcases.
Business Name: STS Impact Windows & Doors
Address: 1000 Holland Dr #10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States
Phone: (561)-600-1018
Hurricane season shapes life along Florida's coasts. You feel it in the method next-door neighbors track tropical waves, the pre-storm rush to stockpile, and the ritual of hauling ladders to mount panels. After two decades defining, installing, and troubleshooting building envelopes from Secret Largo to Palm Beach, I have actually seen what holds up and what does not. When the objective is real protection with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade approved, energy‑efficient effect windows outshine shutters in ways that surpass storm day. They alter how a home feels in August, how peaceful your living room remains on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up much faster than predicted.
This is a useful look at why many South Florida homeowners are moving from shutters to hurricane impact-resistant windows, how to check out the standards behind "Miami-Dade approved," what materials matter, and how to get the setup right the first time.
Miami-Dade County's Product Control Department sets among the hardest benchmarks in the country for building elements exposed to windborne debris. Approval is not a marketing sticker. It is made through specific laboratory tests that simulate real typhoon conditions.

First comes large rocket impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is contended the glass at approximately 34 miles per hour. That mimics roofing tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the impact, the very same unit faces cyclic pressure loading, countless pressurization and depressurization cycles that imitate rapid wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The distinction between "meets Florida building code windows" and "Miami-Dade authorized windows" frequently resides in these test limits. Miami-Dade is merely stiffer, especially in High Velocity Typhoon Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind scores differ by opening size and design pressures, denoted as PSF worths. On ocean-facing homes or high-rises, I frequently define units rated at +60/ -80 PSF or greater. Inland or in more protected direct exposures, ratings in the +45/ -60 PSF range can suffice, but you size and spec based on the website's wind map, building height, and surrounding structures. A professional understands that a corner direct exposure at the 2nd story demands different reinforcement than a sheltered window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs effect windows is not a one-to-one contrast. Shutters can satisfy code, and they're better than nothing. But they ask you to do work at the worst possible time. When a watch turns to a caution and the forecast track tightens up, the last thing you want is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows live in place. You get constant security, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on US 1. You likewise get advantages every day of the year.
Noise control is the most underappreciated benefit. Laminated impact glass is basically a sandwich: two panes of glass bonded by a resilient interlayer, generally PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps noise. On tasks along hectic corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight courses, I have actually determined interior sound drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, in some cases more when paired with insulated glass units.
Security improves due to the fact that laminated glass withstands forced entry. A robber can shatter the outer lite with a hammer, but the interlayer holds the fragments. They meet a sticky, persistent membrane instead of a quick course inside. Insurance coverage underwriters know this, which is why policies frequently use credits for impact windows and doors. In my projects, premiums generally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending upon the carrier and the number of openings are protected.
Energy efficiency is the 3rd pillar. Energy-efficient impact windows with modern-day low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while protecting noticeable light. That indicates less cooling demand, specifically on west and south exposures where the afternoon sun punishes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we changed 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E impact units. Summertime afternoon peak load dropped by approximately a lots of cooling, and the home's yearly electrical power use fell in between 12 and 18 percent. Outcomes differ with shading, attic insulation, and HVAC efficiency, however the instructions is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated items are equal.
Most domestic cyclone windows utilize a PVB interlayer glass stack, commonly 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or numerous plies. Thicker interlayers improve impact resistance and sound control, however they include weight and expense. For oceanfront or tall openings, you might see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and more powerful than PVB, permitting thinner areas to attain greater style pressures. For noise-sensitive websites, acoustic PVB solutions tweak the polymer to better soak up sound in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz variety, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows show up frequently in discussions because tempered glass is stronger in bending than annealed glass. That holds true, and tempered lites are typically used as the external or inner ply in an effect system. However tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the typhoon sense. When it stops working, it takes off into little cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening vulnerable. The effect performance originates from laminated construction, not tempering by itself. Lots of systems utilize a tempered external lite laminated to an annealed inner lite, or both tempered, but constantly bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E finishes matter for convenience. A soft-coat low-E tuned for South Florida generally targets a solar heat gain coefficient in the 0.25 to 0.35 range while keeping visible light transmission around half or greater. Go too low on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, specifically in larger openings. The sweet area depends on your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I frequently tighten SHGC and accept a small tint to manage early morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I favor greater visible transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames control here due to the fact that they handle big openings and will not swell. Thermal breaks and improved glazing gaskets have narrowed the energy gap with vinyl. High-quality vinyl impact frames, when strengthened properly, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating values, but I prevent them for really large sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad systems look stunning in older Mediterranean Revival homes, however they require careful maintenance and wise flashing. The Florida Boca Raton window protection sun damages low-cost vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum surfaces rapidly. Search for powder-coated finishes rated for seaside direct exposure, and request composed service warranty details in salt-air environments.
Window installation can make or break performance. A pricey system set up like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's tension test. The load path is the core. Impact forces have to travel from the glass through the frame, to the anchors, into the substrate, and then into the structure's framing or masonry.
In concrete block building, you want stainless or hot-dipped galvanized anchors embedded into solid material. Hollow cells should be grouted or you need to strike the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to occur. In wood-framed houses, structural screws should bite into strong trimmers, not just sheathing. Shimming and plumb alignment matter so the locks engage cleanly and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
The sealant joint is not just visual. An appropriately sized backer rod and premium polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant develop a long lasting, flexible seal that deals with thermal growth. Too small a bead and it tears under movement. Too big and it remedies inadequately. On coastal tasks, I never ever match dissimilar metals without a barrier, and I constantly specify corrosion-resistant fasteners. 10 years later on, you will see who took shortcuts.
Flashing is the other non-negotiable. Pan flashing at sills, self-adhered membranes at jambs and heads, and integration with the water-resistive barrier are crucial. If you rely on sealant alone, water will discover its method. That wetness might disappoint up as a drip. It may rot a sill plate slowly, then betray itself as a buckling flooring or a musty smell 2 cyclone seasons later.
I have nothing against properly designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are maintained and lubed, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even removable panels kept carefully can safeguard homes successfully. They also assist in certain cases.
Second homes or seasonal rentals where budget is tight sometimes lean on shutters to fulfill the Florida building regulations windows requirement for secured openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is seldom utilized in summer season, a clean motorized roll-down can be reasonable, especially if coupling with effect windows and doors elsewhere stresses the spending plan. For property owners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a short bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring trade-offs. They darken your house when deployed, and they need action at specifically the time you are managing insurance documents, gas cans, and household logistics. During Typhoon Irma, I watched a next-door neighbor try to mount steel panels hours before landfall. The ladder sank in saturated soil, a panel slipped, and we spent the next hour in the immediate care waiting room. He survived with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters likewise rattle and can vibrate under continual winds, often loosening fasteners in time if not maintained.
For long-lasting owners who want to set it and forget it, impact windows offer hurricane proof windows coverage while protecting daylight and view. The benefit grows important once you've experienced one storm season with absolutely no prep beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes battle two fights: latent load from humidity and reasonable load from direct solar heat gain. Impact glass upgrades can assist both if defined intelligently.
Low-E effect glass uses microscopically thin metal layers to show infrared energy while letting noticeable light through. With the right finish stacks, you can block a big part of radiant heat and UV. UV blockage in laminated systems comes mostly from the interlayer itself, which usually filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, reducing fading of fabrics and flooring. Include the low-E, and you curb the solar heat that drives your air conditioning crazy midafternoon.
I assess glass specs with three numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still helps here by reducing nighttime heat flow and keeping the interior glass temperature closer to room temperature level, which lowers condensation risk. SHGC drives how much solar heat enters. VT influences how brilliant the interior feels. Balance is essential. Some house owners want the crisp, clear look of greater VT, even if it indicates accepting a couple of degrees more heat in late afternoon, because their landscaping and roofing overhangs currently do some shading. Others choose a stronger tint for glare control on waterside lots that reflect extreme light.
In useful terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern-day low-E laminated double-glazed units can minimize peak solar gains by 30 to 50 percent on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored exterior surfaces, and a properly sized variable-speed HVAC, and you start to construct strength. If the grid decreases and you change to a generator, a lower cooling load means a smaller generator and less gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notification of Acceptance, or NOA, is the document you request. It information the authorized setups, sizes, anchors, and pressures evaluated. It is insufficient to hear "these are Miami-Dade authorized windows" in a showroom. Validate the NOA matches the specific model and choices you are buying, consisting of the glazing makeup and hardware. If you remain in Broward or Miami-Dade, your permitting office will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Item Approval system offers FL numbers that reveal code compliance. In the rest of the state outside the High Velocity Typhoon Zone, Florida building code windows can rely on Florida Product Approval without Miami-Dade specific NOAs. Lots of top manufacturers bring both. Where budgets allow, I prefer NOA items even outside the zone because the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels handle energy metrics. They won't tell you impact performance, but they show U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leak. Aim for air leakage at or listed below 0.3 cfm/ft ². Tighter is better for humidity control, but ensure your home still has actually balanced ventilation. Sealing the envelope and overlooking fresh air is a recipe for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more in advance than shutters. There's no spin around that. Set up costs vary with size, shape, surface, and gain access to. On uncomplicated single-family homes, per-opening costs often land between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for basic sizes. Big multi-panel sliders, customized arches, and coastal-grade finishes raise the numbers quickly.
Where you recoup value:
If you plan to own the home for five years or more, the math typically tilts in favor of impact windows, especially when you factor the intangible of assurance. If you prepare to offer within a year and need to show compliance rapidly, shutters might make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I take note of hardware and accessories. Multi-point locks on casements and awnings improve seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless real estates move smoother and last longer on sandy patio areas. Take a look at the sill design on moving doors. Weep systems need to be crafted to drain heavy rains without letting wind-driven water blow back in. Ask to see a cutaway sample in the showroom.
Tint colors and reflectivity are more than style. Reflective films can run afoul of neighborhood watch or produce mirror-like glare towards neighboring properties. In seaside communities, extremely reflective glass can puzzle birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Regional pros understand which coverings balance performance with compliance.
Color stability is a big deal. Dark bronze or black frames look fantastic on modern-day homes, but in Florida sun low-cost finishes chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated finishings supply the best color retention and chalk resistance. I define them for seaside direct exposures whenever spending plans allow.
Historic districts frequently require profiles that simulate old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, but lead times extend and costs climb. Anticipate extra evaluation by architectural boards, and line up a professional knowledgeable about these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations in some cases define a narrow list of approved items for harmony. They likewise care about noise control between units. If your structure sits directly on Collins Avenue or faces a hectic beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated alternatives. Deal with structure management on staging and lift access. Weekend work windows and restricted parking can include days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, need special attention in style pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every unit that looks durable in a display room meets the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not rely on catalog optimum sizes. Use the NOA tables that represent your site's zone, positive and negative pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The finest tasks start with a measured survey and exposure analysis. You map each opening, note the substrate, and determine any framing irregularities or settlement fractures. Throughout proposal, the contractor reveals you the NOA and the Florida Item Approval, lists anchor types, and discusses how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They plan for stucco or drywall repairs, not pretend no damage will occur.
On install day, they get rid of one opening at a time to keep your house protected. They secure floors, draw back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames come out with care to preserve interior finishes. New units get dry-fit, shimmed, and anchored per the schedule. The team checks squareness and diagonals before setting sealant. They photograph anchors for the license file, particularly if they will be hidden. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to verify drainage paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documents in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with 2 fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no secret rattle throughout thunderstorms. You did not have to call for a roller change after the very first week. That is the standard.
Impact ranking does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can split under extreme impacts, however it ought to remain in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends out debris into the glass, you might see star cracks or spidering. The window did its task. Change the sash or IGU after the event.
Window films do not transform non-impact windows into hurricane impact-resistant windows. They can add shatter resistance, but they do not alternative to a tested, anchored system. Your insurer and structure department will not count films as safeguarded openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient impact windows reduce air leakage. That's terrific, however it increases the significance of an effectively sized a/c with great dehumidification. If your system is oversized, the thermostat pleases quickly and stops working to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your HVAC pro to inspect sensible heat ratio, airflow, and run time. You desire steady, longer cycles, not brief bursts.
Maintenance is simple but not optional. Tidy weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and lubricate hardware every year with a silicone-based item that will not gum up in heat. Little practices extend lifespan.
There are genuine factors to blend options. A set of rarely utilized garage windows can keep detachable panels to shave budget. A deep-set porch with minimal sun direct exposure may do great with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a brand-new roofing deck accessory or a fortified garage door. Shutters can likewise safeguard outside kitchen areas or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age expensive hardware prematurely.
If you select shutters, buy quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with manual bypasses for roll-downs make a distinction. Designate obligation for release and practice as soon as beyond a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you require 32 wing nuts is not the early morning you wish to discover you have 29.
Impact windows are not only about surviving the huge one. They improve daily living. The living-room remains cooler and quieter. The a/c cycles calmly rather of racing at 4 p.m. You sleep without freight trains of wind sound when a squall line passes at 2 a.m. When a cyclone threatens, your preparation list gets much shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and concentrate on people rather than panels.
For a number of my clients, that intangible is the deciding factor. They understand storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too good to live inside a fortress that just awakens in August. Miami-Dade authorized windows provide you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February morning and quiet self-confidence when the spaghetti models point our way in September.
If you are weighing the choice, begin with a site-specific assessment. Match your direct exposures to develop pressures, select the best laminated glass stack for wind and heat, select frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and work with a team that respects the load course. Done right, energy‑efficient effect windows deliver what shutters can not: defense that never asks for a ladder and a much better home every day of the year.